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Debit card use increases Photo by Bob Pennell The use of debit card machines is on the rise in the Rogue Valley. This one is at Medford's Target store. Shoppers find it quicker, easier than checkbook By DAVID PRESZLER Another way to pay is challenging the traditional triumvirate of cash, checks and credit cards. More and more, shoppers already armed with a variety of payment options are using debit cards, which deduct purchases directly from a checking account. "I'm talking to more and more people that say they don't even carry a checkbook," says Shawnette Hastey of Rogue Federal Credit Union, which offers debit cards to its members. The number of debit card purchases by Rogue Federal members rose about 25 percent from January to August, Hastey says. Representatives of several other banks agreed use is growing quickly. Bankers and shoppers who use debit cards say convenience is the key to the cards' popularity. "Personally, it's so nice because I don't have to scramble to get my checkbook out," says Tammy Glass, an assistant vice president at Bank of Southern Oregon. "And you don't have to have them ask for a million forms of ID." "I do it because it's easier," says Medford resident Diane Huntoon, who used her debit card Monday afternoon to pay for a Christmas present for her son. Despite their growing popularity as an alternative to checks, few expect debit cards to replace their paper counterparts anytime soon. Glass doesn't expect checks to disappear, "But over the next five years, I think we'll see (check use) drop by about 50 percent.'' While the convenience of debit cards is a plus to many, Phoenix's Tracey Gutierrez avoids them just for that reason. "It's rather scary," she says. "It can pile up on you. When you sit there and have to write it out, you think a little more about what you are spending. "And those little slips get lost." That's the biggest difficulty customers have with the cards, bank and consumer affairs officials say. Having money removed from a checking account electronically also makes some people uneasy. They worry that someone can get their card or number and drain their account. But Jan Margosian, who investigates consumer fraud for the state Attorney General's Office, says she hasn't seen that happen much with the cards. "We have had very few complaints on debit-card problems," she says. VISA and MasterCard, the two leading issuers of debit cards, limit customers' liability if debit cards are lost or stolen. The loss is limited to $50 if the missing cards are reported within 48 hours; the liability can rise significantly after that. Financial institutions have pushed debit cards as an alternative to checks in part because they're easier for them to process. The cards pack a number of benefits for consumers. They can be faster to use and are accepted at places checks aren't. There are benefits to retailers, too. "The merchant knows at the point of sale whether there's money in that account," says Jan Safley of the Consumer Credit Counseling Service of Southern Oregon. "That provides a certain level of security." But merchants say quicker transactions are debit cards' big selling point. "We encourage the use of them because it's just a big time-saver," says Paulisa Fields, an assistant manager at Target. Ironically, the trend hasn't caught on in businesses where getting in and out quick is paramount -- places like fast-food restaurants and coffee shops. "We've discussed them," says Medford Coffee Company owner Del Westlund, whose store takes only cash and checks, "but we don't want anything to slow down the process." Today's Business Index Mail Tribune Copyright � The Mail Tribune 1998, Medford, Oregon USA